The Quest for Deacons

A Sermon Based on Acts 6:1-7 and 1 Timothy 3:8-13

Good morning. It is a great joy and a blessing to once again be found in the house of the Lord and to take this time to share God’s word with you. As Pastor Phil mentioned, today is a special service. All Sundays are special, but this morning it’s so special. We are inducting or ordaining our deacons.

So turn with me in your Bibles to the book of Acts, chapter number six.

In Acts chapter six, we find a remarkable narrative of what may be argued as the proto-deacons, the first deacons to ever assume office in the church. As the physician Luke records for us the narrative, he shows us the manner in which God continued to mature his church and to grow his church.

In chapter number one, Jesus Christ had told the disciples that they would receive power and they would be witnesses from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. They were to do so through the preaching and the proclamation of the gospel.

Having been empowered by the Holy Spirit in chapter number two of Acts, we see the church now being born. Peter stands up and preaches the clear gospel: Christ died, Christ was buried, Christ rose, Christ ascended. You are sinners, you must repent, you must believe in this gospel and be baptized.

And we are told as we transition from chapter 2 to chapter 3 that 3,000 were added to the church. And they continue to preach the gospel and they face opposition in chapter number 4. And they are commanded not to preach in the name of Jesus. But yet, as opposition is coming from outside, the devil is launching onslaughts on this ministry from outside. We are seeing also that the disciples make a resolution that they come together and they pray.

What are they praying for? They are asking that God would endow them with the Holy Spirit, that they must preach the gospel with boldness. And God would grant them their request such that as we come to chapter number four, going into chapter five, it is evident—as you come to chapter five, verse 42—”every day in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.”

Now that’s a remarkable story. But then opposition has come from outside. What does the enemy do in order to stop or to silence the church of Jesus Christ?

Jesus had instructed his disciples to be witnesses beginning in Jerusalem. They began on the day of Pentecost. The gospel continued to advance as we see from chapter 1 all the way to chapter 5. But as you come to chapter 6, there is a perceived internal attack that Satan now launches on the church—to silence the church, to distract the church.

And we examine this morning what then would be the solution to that problem as the apostles would deem it. We will understand what is the role of the deacons. They decided and resorted: “We will appoint deacons so that the priority of the proclamation of the gospel is sustained and the presentation of the gospel is also maintained within the local church.”

Deacons are and were appointed in Acts chapter number 6 to be the equilibrium point—that the manner and the mandate of the local church is preserved. The unity and the maturity of the church is sustained.

The Text: Acts 6:1-7

“Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, ‘It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.’ And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.”

Prayer

Our glorious eternal God and Savior, we bow before you. We thank you for your eternal word. We acknowledge your power at work among us, in us, and over us. We thank you for the marvelous witness of the gospel we have seen here at Kitwe Church.

O God, now we ask as we look at this passage of scripture—so familiar, yet so holy and sacred, able to discern the intents of our hearts and able to sanctify us and to set us apart for that which you have called us—we desire that we will not receive your word as the word of man, but rather as it is, as the word of God, which is able to make us wise for salvation.

So we ask therefore that even as we charge these, our two brothers, we too would arm ourselves with the same mind of servanthood, that we may come with humility as we desire to serve one another.

So insofar as these requirements and qualifications are expected of the men who are to assume this office, you require the same for all of us. And if it is to that end, we are asking that your Holy Spirit will help us.

If there are some here among us who are self-serving, who are serving the world and Satan and the lust of the flesh and anything that does not please you, we also desire and ask of you that you will constrain them to come to you, that you may be glorified among us as your word would continue to be proclaimed from this place even beyond.

For the glory of Christ we ask and we pray. May God’s people say amen.

The Quest for Deacons

If we are to examine this passage that we have read together this morning, it presents to us a pattern, but also it presents us the problem as to why God would have it—as the church was progressing, as the gospel was advancing—that we would have this particular piece of the Bible.

Deacons are a necessary ministry within the local church. This passage that we have seen this morning shows us that at a moment or a season when the church had rumblings within—attacks, as it would—the apostles saw it to be a very necessary point that they would ordain or appoint these men to this particular office.

But I also want to come home here to our church. At this particular time in Acts chapter number 6, the church in Jerusalem is becoming diverse. Jews are receiving the gospel and they are being saved. You are seeing that in chapter number 5, verse number 42. You are also seeing that in chapter number 6, verse number 7. The number of the disciples is increasing. It’s evident in verse number 1, we are told that the disciples in those days, their number was increasing.

There’s mathematics happening all over the place. God is multiplying his church. I want you to observe that. But whilst God is busy multiplying the church, Satan has gone to work and he has come to divide God’s people.

The devil has tried to destroy the infant church by persecution from without. He has tried to divide and to destroy this infant church by deception as well from within. Now he seeks to sow seeds of dissension within.

And it is from this that we see—if you can observe with me this particular text from verses number 1 all the way to verse number 7—there’s that divine addition. Look with me at verse number 1. There’s that divine addition. God is adding.

It’s evident God is at work here, that he has begun the work in chapter number 2—adding to their number in chapter 2, 3,000 are saved. In chapter number 4, they go about and they are preaching the gospel. He continues to add. He multiplies them, and as the numbers are increasing, even as the apostle Paul would tell us in 1 Corinthians chapter number 3, as they are preaching, God is bringing the increase.

Divine Addition and Demographic Division

Secondly, I want you to observe in this particular text the quest for these deacons. Not only is God adding, but we see here there is the demographic division. Verse number 1b tells us there’s a demographic division: “A complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews.”

Why are they complaining? The Bible tells us the reason why: “Their widows are being neglected in the daily distribution.”

Now, if you have any version of the Bible, we are not told as to what is being distributed in this text. But as the widows would have needs, there would be a number of things that the church was assigned to take care of. As we are also observing in the book of 1 Timothy, chapter number 5, the church was mandated to take care of the widows among them.

We are also taught of the work of the church. Go with me to chapter number 4 and you hear this in verse 32: “Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.”

We are also told in chapter number 4, verse number 33: “And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.”

Verse 34 tells us: “There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.”

So in essence, the church here is attending to the daily needs as any would have needs, and the church takes this task seriously, that they don’t want to neglect anyone among them.

So yes, we are seeing in this quest for deacons, there is divine addition, but this divine addition brings with it a demographic problem. There is one particular group that is being neglected.

We don’t know whether it was out of favoritism, we don’t know as to what caused it, but there is a neglect being pointed. They are so diverse at this particular time. There are men who are coming from the Jewish traditions as Pharisees. Those who have adhered to the understanding of the gospel. There are those who have been saved as they came for the day of Pentecost. And as the church is progressing and growing, the pains of growth are that Satan would find a cause to sow seeds of discord.

This particular local church would be almost likened to us in many ways as Kitwe Church. In that we are men and women who are coming from different walks of life, and as we are coming together, it is also possible to have those dissensions, disgruntledness, dissatisfaction. And it’s not on the cardinal issues of the doctrine that these men and women are fighting for or they are fighting against. I want you to observe here.

And this is the tactic that Satan would use most of the time against any local church. It is in the daily distribution that Satan then uses as a point in which the church has the potential then to divide.

So God is adding. There’s division among them because of their demographic and the distribution of food. Number three, what do we see then? We’re seeing then there is that demonic division. Because a complaint by the Hellenists now arises. We’re seeing the object now—it’s against the Hebrews.

So there are parties now. It’s them against us. It’s the Hellenists against the Hebrews. Now they are no longer finding their identity in the gospel anymore. Now they are finding their identity in their ethnicities.

Here, in this particular verse 1b, we are not told as to whether it was the Hebrews who were favoring the Hebrews or the Hellenists favoring their fellow Hellenists. We are not told in this text.

The Disciples’ Solution

Now, we see here then there’s divine addition, demonic division. Then there’s a disciple solution. The disciples now are coming together to solve the problem. Verse number two introduces to us how the disciples will solve this problem.

In a church that is growing in its number, these men and women—in many ways, you have no doubt about who they are. They are disciples. These are students of Jesus Christ. They have sat under the teachings of their master, and as disciples, they are making this resolution—the prioritization of the proclamation of the word here becomes a chief concern for these disciples.

Even more important to note that in this context, Luke uses the term “disciple” to refer to believers, to followers of Christ. In fact, this is the most common name given to the followers of Jesus Christ in the book of Acts. This will be the first time it will be referred to—that the number of the disciples is increasing. Those whose character marks the character of Christ. Those whose identity is marked in Christ. Those who have been overpowered by the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And the twelve know who called them. And they also do understand why he called them.

So here, the disciples, they do the wise thing. The disciples solve this problem by summoning all the disciples. I want you to see here, very important. They summon the full number of the disciples.

Most likely then, you may look at this verse and you may also consider this: it was most likely that in this particular church there were some who came and they came because of those distributions that were taking place as we saw in chapter number four. But for this particular meeting, it’s the disciples then who are summoned together—those who are followers of Christ. And they are given the task to choose from among them.

Not every Jim and Jack is called to this task. Not everyone who was among them is called to this. Those who are being summoned to this particular role and task are those who are specifically called here the disciples.

Now I want you to observe with me in this verse. Verse number two. They say: “It is not right that we should give up the preaching of the word of God to serve tables.”

The word used there: it is not right for us to neglect the preaching of the Word of God and to do the task of deaconing. As important as that is, for the apostles, they reckon to say this is a matter of priorities.

It’s not an issue of opportunity cost here, no. It is an issue of making sure that the task of the gospel still advances and yet the church still continues to serve the purposes of Christ outside and the purposes of Christ inside.

So their prioritization of the word was not just meant to enable them to preserve the word, but rather it was to propagate it. This is God’s way of preserving. This church defended the purity of the gospel and the unity of the saints in the gospel by ordaining or appointing these deacons.

So these deacons are going to play a pivotal role in their church as they are going to bring in this balance of being both outward looking and inward looking. While the church is being edified by the preaching of the apostles, she is expected also to remain united by the preaching of the gospel, and deacons are appointed then to maintain that unity.

That is the quest of the deacons. And we see it that in this particular text that God would have it in his economy as he would have it.

The Qualifications of the Deacons

Then we see number two, the qualifications of the deacons. Go with me. Verse number three tells us the qualifications of the deacons: “Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute”—we’re going to examine this in detail—”full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

Observe there with me. These are the two officers in the church: those whose preoccupation will be to preach the word and to bring about the maturity of the church, and those who will preserve the word to bring about the unity of the church.

And from these proto-deacons, then you see as the gospel would go out as a result of this wise choice—there’s that divine multiplication from chapter 6, verse number 7. The preaching of the word takes the central stage. The propagation of the word through individual deacon Stephen in particular is seen. Then he goes about in the streets. He’s polemic in his approach as he’s going about to evangelize to those who are defending and they’re trying to dissuade the believers.

Stephen then stands out among the seven as a man who perseveres amidst persecution. He will be the first deacon then who serves as Christ served, that he will then go on to lay down his life as a servant leader.

What is the qualification and the character criteria of the men who assumed this role? They were men of good repute, full of the Holy Spirit, full of wisdom. They are the ones who are appointed to this particular duty. Stephen then would be one of those men. And you know what happened? He’s killed.

The Call to Serve as Christ Served

And the Lord Jesus Christ in his call to all his disciples—this call goes to all of his disciples, not only to Stephen. Christ has been so clear in the book of Mark. Go with me to Mark chapter number 10, verses 42 to 45.

Jesus would say this: “You know that those who are supposed to rule over the Gentiles lord it over them, and the great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

So we serve Christ, and how we serve Christ will vary according to the spiritual gifts that he has given us and opportunities that come our way. But every Christian should have a mindset that “I am a servant, a slave of Jesus.”

Yes, there is difference between those terms. And yet Jesus Christ uses them interchangeably. When he looks at every one of his disciples, what does Christ expect? He expects that every one of his disciples, including those who are assigned to the office of the deacons, were to serve as they are serving Christ.

Christian, let me remind you. Serving Christ is not volunteering, where you give a few hours now and then you help out. Serving Christ is a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week calling. Whatever you are doing, wherever you are at, you are a servant of the Lord who rescued you from the eternal judgment. He served you and He saved you for himself, to himself.

We are living in a world that’s self-seeking, self-serving, self-focused. We hear of languages of self-esteem. No, when the Lord calls you, he calls you to deny yourself, your sinful self, your satisfaction self, your self-righteous self. Christ calls you and I to deny all of that and that we must come to him.

But we may also say this as we see it in the scriptures, in the structures of the local church. Some are called to be official servants, or deacons. The word deacon is translated simply meaning a servant.

In more than 100 passages in the New Testament, deacons then refer to those who are going to—as in the true sense—these are men who have given their lives to serve the purposes of Christ within the local church, to maintain the unity of the church.

Paul’s Expanded Qualifications for Deacons

Now, as to their character qualities, maybe if it was something else that maybe we are very much aware of that we can learn from the world, it would be very good for us to learn. But the Bible gives us as to how that then will look like if the proto-deacons lived like this, and they raised their standards so high that among the seven deacons appointed, the first deacon would lay down his life literally and he would die for the cause of the gospel.

What then should we look at or should we consider when we are looking at deacons in the church? It is the man then who writes for us to tell us as to what kind of deacons should we look for. It will be a man who witnessed the death of the first deacon. There is every indication that Paul was among those men who Stephen was arguing with as pertaining to the gospel.

Paul would be the one who was there authorizing and he was there to make sure that that first deacon dies. He looks at that portrait of this first deacon and as he’s writing to Timothy, in 1 Timothy chapter 3, there is every remembrance of Paul in his mind, that he remembers that first deacon and how he lived his life.

That the charge and the plea that Paul is giving to Timothy in 1 Timothy chapter 3 is one that has the words of the first deacon ringing at the back of his mind: “Father, forgive them because they do not know what they are doing.”

And listen to what Paul then requires as he writes to Timothy as to the qualifications of the deacons. Luke tells us in verse number three the basic qualifications, but I think we’ll do right to see how this verse 3 correlates to 1 Timothy chapter 3.

Listen what Paul then writes and he says in 1 Timothy chapter 3—this is the church in Ephesus where Timothy finds himself as a pastor. The church in Ephesus in so many ways would be almost similar to the church in the book of Acts. Diverse in their composition and they were also facing a danger also of division.

And Paul labored on to write the book of Ephesians and he tells them of the unity they share in Christ. He calls them to that unity in chapter number 2 as he tells them in verses 11 to 14. But the beauty of this particular church in Ephesus is that Paul now addresses the pastor in Ephesus, Timothy himself.

And then he gives him the criteria of those men who were to be leaders in the church. He first gives the criteria for the elders, verses 1 to 7. Then verses 8 to 13, he labors on to give the qualifications for deacons.

1 Timothy 3:8-13 – The Four Qualifications

He says: “Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.”

Look with me at those qualifications:

1. They Must Be Dignified

Number one, he says they must be dignified. In essence, what Paul is saying, there must be men who walk worthy of honor. Men of dignity, these are respectable, honorable men whose lives evoke respect from others.

The thought is that deacons must carry themselves in a way that earns respect and there must be men who are serious-minded, not foolish or frivolous. These are men who are reverent or behaving with such character that evokes special respect.

It does not describe a demeanor of a person who is gloomy or a killjoy. That’s not what Paul has in mind here. But the conduct of the man who knows what he lives for, that he lives in light of eternity. He knows who he is, that he is in a fallen world, but he knows whose he is.

Look with me that Paul here focuses on who this man is. He’s focusing on their being before he focuses on their doing. Because this is how God has it and this is how Christianity is. We do not care more about your doings. We care more about who you are.

God cares more about who leaders are, not just what they do. Deacons may handle physical things or physical tasks, but their spiritual integrity is crucial. So there must be men who are worthy of honor. That’s number one.

2. They Must Not Be Double-Tongued

Number two, they must be men whose words are marked by honesty. Verse 8b tells us they must not be double-tongued. They speak of a man who says what they mean and they mean what they say. They must be characterized by integrity, consistency, and honesty.

They are not to be saying different things to different groups, to be accepted by one group and to be accepted by the other, to be true to the other and false to the other. No, this is not going to bring about the unity they are supposed to bring.

Otherwise, if we will have such a Christian among us who sows discord, who speaks one thing to the other, one thing to the other, they are not doing the mission of Christ in preserving the unity of the gospel. They are basically doing the work of the devil. Because it’s only the devil who comes to steal, to kill, and to destroy.

This point is that they are to be truthful. Truthfulness must mark their leadership.

So we see in this particular verse there are men whose walk is worthy of honor, number two, there are men whose words are marked by honesty.

3. They Must Not Be Addicted to Much Wine

But number three, we see in that particular verse that not only are they that, there are men whose walk is empowered by the Holy Spirit. They are not addicted to much wine. Literally the verse there: it’s not given to much wine.

Deacons must be masters of their appetites, not be mastered by their appetites. They must be self-controlled and moderate. Deacons must not be enslaved by substance, appetites, or cravings. They must reflect the fruit of the spirit, especially self-control.

Do you see that that was the same requirement that the early church was required if they were to choose a man amongst them? It was a man who was full of the Holy Spirit.

Why do I say that these would be men who are walking in the Spirit? Ephesians chapter number 5, verses 15 to 18 tells us this: “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit.”

In essence, what the Apostle Paul here is saying is, we need men who are controlled by the Spirit. They are not intoxicated by politics. They are not intoxicated by political sways of the church. They are full of the Spirit, that in their following after the Spirit, they are maintaining love, joy, peace in the Holy Spirit. These are men who, as their lifestyle, they are walking in the spirit in order to guard the heart and the mind and the unity of the church. They are the glue, literally, that’s bringing the church together.

And Stephen modeled just that.

4. They Must Not Be Greedy for Dishonest Gain

Number four, they must be men who are not greedy for gain. Verse 8 tells us and it finishes with that in chapter number 3, there must not be men who are in it for dishonest gain.

Now, at this point then, you would then infer and be able to see that as the apostles were selling their houses and they were bringing them together, among the things that they would bring together would be money. And these men, one of their tasks was to take those monies and distribute them as the church had needs.

So in their handling of money here, it is expected of these caliber of men that they must not be lovers of money. They are to be men who are content. They are men who are in it not for sordid gain, as KJV would put it. They are not pursuing shameful gain.

They are handling church resources with the heart of a steward. And they know that it is required of a steward to be found faithful.

The Essential Internal Quality

So here’s what you see in these qualities of a deacon. In this first verse, Paul focuses on the external qualities of the deacons. But it goes on to speak of one particular quality, which I believe is essential for our church, but also for any local church. That is in verse number nine.

“They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.”

The internal quality we are expecting—the first section speaks of how the deacons must behave. But this particular verse speaks of what deacons must believe and how they ought to hold that belief.

Paul emphasizes that deacons are not merely practical helpers. They are spiritually grounded servants entrusted with the deep truths of the Christian faith. So they ought to be custodians of that. They are holding on to that. That’s present tense, and they are doing it continually. They are possessing this mystery.

What Is the Mystery of the Faith?

The mystery of the faith here—speaking of that which was hidden, now has been made manifest. Now the question is, what mystery has Paul in view as he speaks of these deacons? What is it that’s at stake in the church in Ephesus that Paul considers it to be very much cardinal, that if ever a man is going to assume the office of a servant, he needs to hold to this mystery?

You see, in the scriptures, the scripture uses the term mystery to indicate truth which was previously unknown, but which now has been made known through the revelation as it is mediated by God.

What mystery has Paul in view? I’m glad you asked. Go to verse number 16. Paul says: “Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.”

In the immediate context, what Paul has in mind, he has the incarnation of Christ. In essence, then what Paul is asking that Timothy would do, he should make sure that these men who are to assume the office, they must be men who are upholding this particular incarnation truth that Jesus Christ came primarily not to be served, but to serve.

They are to maintain the mystery of Christ’s incarnation.

Colossians chapter 1, verses 26-27, we also see there is a mystery of Christ dwelling in the believer. Ephesians chapter 3, verses 4 to 6, there’s a mystery that there is the unity now of the Jews and the Gentiles. It was hidden from ages, now has been made manifest that all nations, tongues, and tribes, peoples from every kindred are now one in Jesus Christ.

And the apostle here labors and he says, we want such men whose character and conduct show that they will have a great conviction about who Christ is, what he has done, even among us the believers, that he now dwells in them, but he also now, he is the unifier, that the believers are no longer divided, but they are one in Christ Jesus.

The Charge to Our Deacons

Therefore, brothers, as the Lord would have it, as you assume this office, He is calling you to this particular task: to preserve the unity of the body as it is found in the gospel—that no longer should there be divisions amongst us, no longer should we be fighting against troubles and other things that are of non-essence, but that we would continue to keep our anchor fixed on the gospel, maintaining its purity, but at the same time, sustaining its unity among the believers.

And it is you who has been called to this particular task.

A Call to All Believers

And if you are here this morning, as a Christian, you have been saved by the grace of God. He has called you to this particular truth. You too are called not to serve yourself, but rather to serve the body and maintain its unity.

Christ dwells in you. You are united in Christ, but you are also united with other believers. Therefore, what this calls us to—it calls us then as believers—we lay aside every pride, we lay aside every discord, we lay aside every sin, even the sin of favoritism that clings so closely to us, that we will cherish Christ as the unifying peace and that he will be glorified among us in all his fullness.

It is to such men that they must be well thought of, that they will then gain a good standing for themselves, and also great confidence in faith that is in Christ Jesus.

May God bless us, even as we are now about to induct our two brothers, Romi and Greshom.

Closing Prayer

Let’s pray.

Our glorious eternal Father, we come before you this morning. If ever there was a quest for deacons in the church, it was to preserve the unity of the church. You have laid out for us what caliber of man you require of us to have, yet if we leave it to themselves and if we are left to ourselves, we are left undone.

It is with this in mind we ask of your Holy Spirit to empower us, to enable us, to enable even these brothers. Help us to make their work easy as we also involve ourselves in serving the body.

For you have called all of us to this particular office as servants, yet these men, they have, by your grace, been identified by your disciples, those of us who follow after you. And we desire to commend and commit them to this noble task.

You say the greatest one among you should be the servant of all. You say you came not to be served, but to serve and to give your life as a ransom for many.

So if there are some among us who do not know you, we also pray by your mercy, you will show them of your sacrificial servant heart. For you are meek and lowly of heart.

It is you we give glory and honor in the church. In Jesus’ name, amen.